EQUIPMENT TEST: NIKE HYPERWARM BASELAYER

When it comes to baselayers and ‹Ĺ›performance apparel˘€žË in general, there˘ a great deal for your average sportsman to choose from.

Nike offer one of the most expensive options on the market in their new Hyperwarm baselayers (around £40), part of the Nike Pro Combat range – here at Footy-Boots.com we received one of the more economical options – the Nike Pro Combat HyperWarm Thermal Mock which is about £27

Is there enough difference between this and the competitors to make it worth your cash?

We˘€žËve been testing this baselayer for over 8 weeks in a variety of conditions to find out if it’s suitable for football. Fit

Unlike many of the other baselayers I˘€žËve tried (I had the pleasure of trying 3 against each other last Winter) the Hyperwarm baselayer is a much looser fit Ĺ› meaning that first thing on a cold morning whipping on the Hyperwarm is much more like popping on your favourite jumper then stretching and squeezing your way into some other baselayers.

Personally, I quite like having a well fitted baselayer as it offers a certain level of support to the muscles (Not that I have many muscles to support, as you can see from the pictures!). But, having said that having a looser fitting baselayer was certainly a change I could get used to Ĺ› it was a bit like wearing a thinner, lighter piece of outerwear (like a training top) underneath my shirt that offered completely unrestricted movement.

Every edge (aside from the bottom hem) is nicely elasticated, meaning that if you like to roll your sleeves up, the cuffs on the arms will stop them moving around too much, and I˘€žËm a big fan of the mock-neck on baselayers anyway so having one on here is bonus.

Temperature

I˘€žËll start this section off by saying that ‹Ĺ›Hyperwarm˘€žË is by no means whatsoever an overstatement Ĺ› if you˘€žËre after something to keep you warm in the winter, this is a baselayer that really does its job well.

The lining of the baslayer, rather than being just a single layer of lycra has a thin layer of micro-fleece that lines the whole inside of the baselayer.

The fleecy interior of the HyperWarm Baselayer

Also, Nike say the looser fit of the baselayer allows warm air to sit in-between your skin and the fabric and circulate, providing an evenly increased skin temperature across your upper body.

It˘ worth pointing out here that this model of the HyperWarm baselayer doesn˘€žËt have any ventilation Ĺ› which is great for comfort as it keeps the stitching in use to minimum Ĺ› but it does mean that it does get very warm and there˘ little way of cooling down.

Overall

Personally (and I˘€žËd like to point out that this is just my opinion!) the HyperWarm Thermal Mock was too warm to play a full 90 mins or an hour of 5-a-side in.

It˘ fantastic for before or after a match, and is a real winner in the warm-up, but if I tried to play more than 45 minutes in it, I did find myself getting uncomfortably hot.

Something like body temperature for performance in a football match so subjective, though Ĺ› this is going to be a different experience for a lot of people.

My guess is a lot people reading this will be thinking ”I played a match in -10 at the weekend, I˘€žËd have given anything to be too warm!” or ”I prefer to be too warm whilst playing” and for those people I couldn˘€žËt recommend this baselayer enough Ĺ› I just don˘€žËt think it regulates temperature as well as others on the market.

However, I˘€žËm guessing there are good few like me who Ĺ› even when it˘ cold out Ĺ› find it important not to be too warm, in which case I˘€žËd recommend either just using this baselayer for a half or going for something a little cooler.